R. O. Kwon | |
---|---|
![]() Kwon in 2019 | |
Born | Okyong Kwon Seoul, South Korea |
Education | |
Years active | 2017–present |
Korean name | |
Hangul | 권오경
[1] |
---|---|
Revised Romanization | Gwon Ogyeong |
McCune–Reischauer | Kwŏn Okyŏng |
R. O. Kwon, also known as Reese Okyong Kwon, is a South Korean–born American author. In 2018, she published her nationally bestselling [2] debut novel The Incendiaries with Riverhead Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Her second novel, Exhibit, was published in 2024 with Riverhead Books. [3]
Kwon was born in Seoul, South Korea, and moved to Los Angeles with her family when she was three. [4] She was raised in a Christian household but at the age of 17 experienced a crisis of faith and stopped believing in God.
She attended Yale University. [5] She has a Master of Fine Arts from Brooklyn College. [6]
Kwon's work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, [7] The Guardian, [8] The Paris Review, [9] BuzzFeed, [10] Vice, [11] New York Magazine's The Cut, [12] and elsewhere. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, [13] Yaddo, [14] and MacDowell. [15]
In 2018, Kwon published her debut novel, The Incendiaries, about a woman who becomes involved with a cult of extremist Christians. The novel was inspired by Kwon's own loss of faith in God, and took 10 years to finish. [16] [17] [18] The Incendiaries was named a best book of the year by over 40 publications and organizations, [19] [20] including the Today Show, NPR, BuzzFeed, The Atlantic, PBS Books, Entertainment Weekly, Vulture, and elsewhere, and is being translated into seven languages. [21] Before the book's release, Kwon was called one of "4 writers to watch" by The New York Times. [22] The Incendiaries is an American Booksellers Association Indie Next #1 Great Read [23] and an American Booksellers Association Indies Introduce Pick. [24] The novel received the Housatonic Book Prize, [25] and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Award for Best First Book, [26] Los Angeles Times First Book Prize, [27] and Northern California Independent Booksellers Association Fiction Prize. [28] In addition, the book has been nominated for the American Library Association Carnegie Medal [29] and Aspen Prize. [30]
Kink, [31] a nationally bestselling anthology Kwon co-edited with Garth Greenwell, was released in 2021. Her second novel, Exhibit, was published in 2024.
In November 2018 Kwon revealed that she is bisexual. [32] The initials in her name stand for Reese, her English name, and Okyong, her Korean name. She publishes as R. O. Kwon. [33] Kwon lives in San Francisco and “the long-term plan is to be here until climate change chases us out”. [3]
R. O. Kwon | |
---|---|
![]() Kwon in 2019 | |
Born | Okyong Kwon Seoul, South Korea |
Education | |
Years active | 2017–present |
Korean name | |
Hangul | 권오경
[1] |
---|---|
Revised Romanization | Gwon Ogyeong |
McCune–Reischauer | Kwŏn Okyŏng |
R. O. Kwon, also known as Reese Okyong Kwon, is a South Korean–born American author. In 2018, she published her nationally bestselling [2] debut novel The Incendiaries with Riverhead Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Her second novel, Exhibit, was published in 2024 with Riverhead Books. [3]
Kwon was born in Seoul, South Korea, and moved to Los Angeles with her family when she was three. [4] She was raised in a Christian household but at the age of 17 experienced a crisis of faith and stopped believing in God.
She attended Yale University. [5] She has a Master of Fine Arts from Brooklyn College. [6]
Kwon's work has appeared in publications including The New York Times, [7] The Guardian, [8] The Paris Review, [9] BuzzFeed, [10] Vice, [11] New York Magazine's The Cut, [12] and elsewhere. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, [13] Yaddo, [14] and MacDowell. [15]
In 2018, Kwon published her debut novel, The Incendiaries, about a woman who becomes involved with a cult of extremist Christians. The novel was inspired by Kwon's own loss of faith in God, and took 10 years to finish. [16] [17] [18] The Incendiaries was named a best book of the year by over 40 publications and organizations, [19] [20] including the Today Show, NPR, BuzzFeed, The Atlantic, PBS Books, Entertainment Weekly, Vulture, and elsewhere, and is being translated into seven languages. [21] Before the book's release, Kwon was called one of "4 writers to watch" by The New York Times. [22] The Incendiaries is an American Booksellers Association Indie Next #1 Great Read [23] and an American Booksellers Association Indies Introduce Pick. [24] The novel received the Housatonic Book Prize, [25] and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Award for Best First Book, [26] Los Angeles Times First Book Prize, [27] and Northern California Independent Booksellers Association Fiction Prize. [28] In addition, the book has been nominated for the American Library Association Carnegie Medal [29] and Aspen Prize. [30]
Kink, [31] a nationally bestselling anthology Kwon co-edited with Garth Greenwell, was released in 2021. Her second novel, Exhibit, was published in 2024.
In November 2018 Kwon revealed that she is bisexual. [32] The initials in her name stand for Reese, her English name, and Okyong, her Korean name. She publishes as R. O. Kwon. [33] Kwon lives in San Francisco and “the long-term plan is to be here until climate change chases us out”. [3]